Brush for removing skin blemishes



July 12, 1955 A. KURTIN BRUSH FOR REMOVING SKIN BLEMISHES Filed Feb. 24,1954 Ala/YER Kuemv INVENTOR.

BY 2 4 W111, M

ATTORNEY United States Patent 2,712,823 BRUSH FOR REMOVING SKINBLEMISHES Abner Kurtin, Bronx, N. Y. Application February 24, 1954',Serial No. 412,160 4 Claims. (Cl. 128-303) This invention relates to abrush for removing skin blemishes. The method of blemish removal, usingthe brush of this invention and hereinafter described, is the subjectmatter of another application and is not claimed in this application.

Heretofore there has not been a simple, rapid, and safe method ofremoving such blemishes such as moles, birthmarks and the like withouthaving resort to surgical techniques. Such techniques requiresanesthesia, dressing, antisepsis and the like.

It is an object of this invention to provide a brush which is adapted tobe used in connection with a method for the removal of skin blemisheswithout resort to any surgical technique. Briefly stated the methodcomprises freezing the blemish area and thence applying a shearing forcethereto until the blemish is removed.

The freezing of the blemish area is preferably done by the impingment ofa volatile liquid thereon, the preferred liquid being ethyl chloride.

The shearing force is preferably applied to the frozen blemish area byplacing it in contact with the bristles of a rotating metallic brushmember. The brush member is specially constructed and the limitationssubsequently given, while not absolutely essential for the carrying outof this method, are critical enough to make the method unsatisfactory ifdeparted from.

The invention will be further described by reference to the accompanyingdrawings which are made a part of this specification.

Fig. l is a front view of the brush member which is used in thisinvention showing the means used to cause its rotation.

Fig. 2 is a front view of one form of the brush member used in thisinvention.

Fig. 3 is an alternative form of the brush member used in this inventionwherein two layers of bristles are used.

Fig. 4 is another alternative form of the brush used in this inventionwherein three layers of bristles are used.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the form of the invention shown in Fig. 4taken along lines 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the form of the invention shown in Fig. 4taken along lines 66 of Fig. 4.

Referring now to the form of the invention shown in Fig. 2 Where onlyone layer of bristles are employed in the brush of this invention thereis shown shaft member 10. Shaft member 10 bears a widened portion 11whose use will be subsequently explained. Holding members 12 and 13 aresecured to shaft member 10.

Radially extending bristle members 14 are disposed between holdingmembers 12 and 13 and are secured between them by pressure. A number oflayers of these bristles may be disposed between holding members 12 and13 so that a wider brush area is produced. Bristle members 14 arepointed in the direction of rotation of shaft member 1% at an angle offrom 20-40 degrees.

Bristle members 14 project from the circumference 15 of holding members12 and 13 for a distance of between Va and 3& inch. The bristlesthemselves have a diameter of from- .002 to .004 inch.

Fig. 3 shows a similar brush to that of Fig. 2 except that a greaternumber of layers of bristles are used. In this case the layers aredivided into two clumps and 22.

Fig. 4 shows a similar brush to that of Fig. 2 except that a greaternumber of layers of bristles are used which are divided into threeclumps 20, 21, and 22.

The manner of rotating the brushes shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 willnow be explained by reference to Fig. 1. This figure shows a brushsimilar to that shown in Fig. 4 in position upon holder 25. Holder bearsshaft 26 within which it isrotatable. Shaft 26' bears chuck 27 at itslower end which is provided with jaws (not shown) which can be closedupon shaft member 10 holding it fast to shaft member 26. The widenedportion 11 upon shaft member 10 acts as a stop member preventing shaftmember 10 from being inserted too far into chuck 27, the proper distanceof insertion being thereby determined.

Shaft 26 may be rotated by being connected to a conventional rotarymotor (not shown) by means of the conventional belt or gear drives. Thespeed of rotation of shaft 26 is held as close to 12,000 R. P. M.unloaded as possible.

Knurled portion 28 is provided upon holder 25 so that it can be guidedby the operator as will be subsequently explained. Holding portion 29 isalso provided for the same reason.

The method of this invention will now be explained by reference to theapparatus of Fig. 1.

The blemish area is frozen by spraying a low boiling point volatileliquid, such as ethyl chloride, upon the area until it has been broughtto a temperature below its freezing point. The freezing of this areaalso produces anesthesia so that no further anesthetic is required. Abrush made of a non-corrodible material such as stainless steel, similarto those shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 is then selected and secured withinholder 25. The thickness of the bristles area used is determined by theextent of the blemish area. The bristles are made to contact the blemisharea and remove the blemished tissue. When the operator notes that theblemished tissue has been removed he stops the operation.

The cutting action of the non-corrodible metallic bristles in the brushmember of this invention is greatly enhanced by the fact that thebristles are pointed in the direction of rotation of the brush at anangle of from 2040 degrees.

It is pointed out that the various dimensions of the bristles areextremely important. Thus a thickness of each bristle of from .002 to.004 inch, where the bristles are made of stainless steel, is extremelyimportant since the cutting action of the bristles is accompanied by aflexing thereof. If the bristles are too thin they do not have the powerto cut while if they are too thick they will tear the tissue below theblemish. For the same reason the projection of the bristles from theholding members and their angle of inclination to the direction ofrotation is likewise important.

The foregoing specific embodiments of this invention as set forth in theforegoing specification are for illustrative purposes and for purposesof example only. Various changes and modifications can obviously be madewithin the spirit and scope of this invention and would occur to thoseskilled in this art.

I claim:

1. A metallic brush comprising a rotatable shaft member, a plurality ofdisk shaped holding members secured to said shaft member, and aplurality of radially extending metallic bristle members secured betweensaid holding members, projecting therefrom for a distance of /s ice to,4, inch, and said shaft member.

2. A metallic brushcomprising a rotatable shaft mem- 'ber, a pluralityof disk shaped holding members secured to said shaft member, and aplurality of radially extend-V ing metallic bristle members securedbetween said holding members, projecting therefrom for a distance "of to,4, inch and pointed in the direction of rotation of said shaft memberat an angle of 'from 20-40 degrees.

3. A metallic brush comprising a rotatable shaft member, a plurality ofdisk shaped holding members secured 'to said shaft member, and aplurality of radially extending metallic bristle members of a diameterof from .002 to .004 inch secured between said holding members,

projecting therefrom for a distance of from A; to A2 1.)

inch and pointed in the direction-of rotation of said shaft member at anangle of from 20-40 degrees.

pointed in the direction of rotation of 4. A metallic brush as describedin claim 3 including a number of layers of bristles one above another.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHERREFERENCES 7 Bickham: Operative Surgery, vol. I, 1924, pp. 177- 178.Copy in Division 50.

